Early Buddhism was a predominantly spiritual movement which should
ideally culminate in Enlightenment. Yet, it was embedded in the specific
social environment of ancient India which included a hereditary caste
system. Using the Buddhist Pāli texts and non-Buddhist literature from
up until the last centuries BCE the article examines the four main
hereditary categories (vaṇṇa, jāti, gotta, and kula) and how Early
Buddhism related to them. We conclude that the Buddha and Early Buddhism
did not oppose but rather confirmed the hereditary systems in society as
well as its designations within the monastic community. The Buddha
hereby followed the customs of earlier ascetic movements and imposed no
specific rules on the monastics to eradicate their former social
identity.